Chapter 58
Before I can dwell on it, Florence is there, waiting at the dock, arms crossed, lips pressed into a thin line. Took you long enough,” she says, her sharp gaze flicking to the paparazzi still lingering behind us. You okay?
I nod, even though I’m not sure if I am. My heart is still pounding, my skin too warm where Liam’s holding me.
Liam doesn’t let go. “We need to board. Now.”
Florence sighs. “They’ve already started letting people on. Zane and his guests boarded first. She hands us our passes, eyes narrowing slightly. “Try not to kill each other before we leave port, yeah?”
Liam doesn’t bother responding. He just grabs the tickets and pulls me toward the gangway like we’re running out of time.
- us.
The sight of Florence makes my stomach twist. It reminds me of Tessa. And that reminds me of the silence between
We haven’t spoken since I told her about Zane’s visit.
Not for my lack of trying. No, this silence was her choice. A deliberate effort to stay out of the house when she knew
I’d be there. On days I stayed in, she made sure to be anywhere but home.
She was furious. Furious that I let Zane in. That I let him humiliate me, hurt me.
And maybe the worst part–the part that sits, heavy and unspoken in my chest–is that my first instinct was to lie to her about it. To act like I was fine. Like it hadn’t happened at all.
I only told her the truth when I realised I couldn’t keep it in anymore.
But by then, it was too late.
The cruise ship is massive–less like a boat, more like a floating palace. It’s so polished and grand that, for the first
time, I wonder how much Zane and Becca spent to make it theirs for thirty days.
I expect to feel nervous, to panic now that I’m so close to seeing him again. But all I feel is disgust.
I remember the way his nails dragged against my skin. The way he shoved me so hard I hit the floor, how the knife
nearby sliced my palm.
My skin heats with anger.
The way he spoke to me like I was nothing. Like I didn’t deserve to stand beside Liam.
Like I wasn’t good enough for him so I couldn’t possibly be good enough for anyone else.
But here I am. And Liam is the one holding my hand, steady and sure.
Fake or not, I’m the one at his side. The one who’s here with him.
Zane can fume all he wants. But his obsession with Liam got him nowhere, and at the end of the cruise, it’s Becca who’s going to be waiting for him at the altar, not the hockey player he adores so much.
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Chapter 58
The thought makes me smile.
We step onto the deck. A waiter in a white uniform offers us champagne. I shake my head, Liam fakes 4 glass bust doesn’t drink, his eyes take a sweep around, scanning through the crowd.
The hostility in his eyes bleeds some of the tension out of my shoulders and I hold onto his hand tighter. He finally looks at me, there’s a soft look in his eyes. Still okay?
“As okay as I can be.”
“Good enough.”
We really are late.
There are about thirty guests on board already–some celebrities, a few guys from Zane’s team, and familiar faces from
our past.
Over half of them know about Zane and me.
Maybe they even know exactly how little he thinks of me.
Well, it doesn’t matter anymore.
Our arrival doesn’t go unnoticed. A few guests make their way over to greet Liam, and by extension, me. I do my best to be polite, but my mind is elsewhere.
Liam must sense it because he effortlessly takes over the conversations, flashing that signature smile of his.
“It’s really great to see you, Calloway,” says Stone, a player for the Chicago Blizzards and one of Zane’s closest friends. He grins ear–to–ear at Liam, barely sparing me a glance.
I try not to let the blatant rudeness get to me.
“I’m a huge fan,” Stone adds.
Liam doesn’t return the smile. Instead, he narrows his eyes slightly, clicking his tongue. “Of course you are.”
Stone’s grin falters for half a second before he masks it, but not before throwing me a quick glare.
I almost laugh. What did I do?
“You’ve probably already seen Zane and Becca?” Stone continues, trying to recover. “Zane’s gonna be so starstruck
when he sees-”
“Of course he will be,” Liam smoothly cuts him off. He lets go of my hand, sliding his arm around my waist instead, pulling me in close. Then, loud enough for Stone to hear, he leans in and murmurs, “Should we go greet the future newlyweds, love?”
I tilt my head, pretending to think about it, biting back a smile at the dumbstruck look on Stone’s face. “Do we have
to?”
Liam chuckles, the sound low and warm. “If you don’t want to? Of course not.”
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Chapter 58
Upst Then, withus hesitation, passato ng stud
Text finds my desks.
a
I can feel Stor’s
wing lot w, bet I don’t o
All I can focus on is the way Liam hodds
Bike I’m the only person shut muttar,
It’s fake, Emilia,
Fake
Fake.
Fake.
Somehow, it feels more like I’m trying to convince myself that it’s the truth.
Cam’s words ring in my head over and over: “Pro tip: he’s great as pretending Absolutely top–tier boyfriend material He’ll even text you good morning like he means it!
I barely have time to worry about it when in my peripheral vision, someone familiar catches my eye.
So familiar I barely have to look to know.
It’s the groom.
I plaster a fake smile on my face.
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